Alex Moore

An eight-year-old has written to the Prime Minister to ask for help fighting fracking in Derbyshire.

Oliver Greenwood decided to contact Theresa May after seeing how upset his mother Wendy was about the possibility of fracking taking place near the home she was in the process of buying in Marsh Lane, near Eckington.

A sign opposing fracking in Derbyshire.

Energy company Ineos has been awarded licenses by the Government to explore the possibility of drilling for shale gas across the East Midlands - including in Marsh Lane.

Mrs Greenwood, who used to live in Sheffield, was unaware of the firm's plans before she put an offer in on her dream home, only finding out after contracts were exchanged earlier this month.

"I was driving to work and spotted a small ‘No Fracking Way’ sign in Middle Handley," she said.

"I started to panic and pulled up to investigate online on my phone.

"To my shock and horror I found out about the proposal. I felt so numb- almost as though I was in a dream.”

The purchase process was far enough advanced that Mrs Greenwood would lose a significant sum.

She now believes her home could, at worst, be 'unsellable', and has joined some of the local anti-fracking groups to try to fight Ineos's plans.

Oliver, having seen his mother so upset, decided to try to help by writing to the country's most powerful politician.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, he said: "My mummy means the world to me and she is the most amazing mummy in the whole wide world. She does everything for me on her own.

"Mummy is very sad and I'm sad too. Mummy is sad because they want to do fracking next to our house that we are buying.

"My mummy has cried every day. She is so worried that she will lose all her money.

"I am scared that fracking will make me ill. I think fracking in Marsh lane will ruin me and my mummies life.

"Please can you help us and please move fracking far away from homes. I would like to come to your office in London to talk with you about this."

Mrs Greenwood also warned others looking to buy in the area to do their research.

More than 300 people turned up to Ineos's first public consultation in Marsh Lane on Tuesday.